WCF 2016: Embellish the world through the perspective of culture

Bali, Indonesia, Oct. 14, 2016 (Antara) -- The collaborative dance performance between the participants of International Folk Dance Fetival (IFDF) and a number of Indonesian artists stunningly amazed the participants of World Culture Forum (WCF) 2016 at the of the gala dinner held at Plenary Hall, Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center (BNDCC), Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia on Oct. 13. The dance entitled "Hamemayu Hayuning Buwana" is developed by a leading Indonesian choreographer, Bimo Wiwohatmo. In the Japanese culture, Hamemayu Hayuning Buwana symbolizes the core value of the life, roughly interpreting as "to embellish the world".

WCF 2016 has already been running since October 4, through a number of preceding events which were dedicated to the youth such as IFDF and International Youth Forum. Starting from Oct. 10, WCF 2016 featured a series of cultural and environmental symposiums, bringing a number of expert speakers from around the world to discuss the most demanding issues in terms of the harmonization between culture and development amid the modernization and globalization:

Symposium 1 emphasized the role of culture in safeguarding the nature and villages from destructive harm caused by the development.
Symposium 2 discussed about the importance of water as a mechanism of social growth and sustainable development.
Highlighting the theme "Water for life: Reconciling Socio-Economic Growth and Environmental Ethics", Symposium 3 took up the integration between history and culture for the sustainable development.
Symposium 4 examined the opportunity and benefit of conserving and implementing the culture through the perspective of technology
Symposium 5 came up with the points of concern in light of harmonizing the culture and development; drive the solidarity in society, implement the local wisdom, embrace the marginalized groups, stop the war and carry out the dialogue to solve problems.
Symposium 6 to discuss the cultural diversity for responsible development, featuring three experts; Din Syamsuddin (the Indonesian Council of Ulama Advisory Council Chairman), Ahmad Fedyani Saifuddin (Professor of Anthropology, University of Indonesia), and Moncef Ben Abdeljelil (Dean of Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, University of Sousse, Tunisia).

In addition to the symposium series, WCF 2016 also saw bilateral agreements sealed between Indonesia and New Zealand and Iran.

Indonesian Minister of Education and Culture Muhadjir Effendy commented on the results of the WCF 2016 that will be contributive to strengthening a national identity and support national development. "Together, the government, private sector, NGO, and IGO as well as society will strive to ensure that the World Culture Forum will be a regular event for the future of human, culture, and nature," stated the Minister.

Director General of Culture, Ministry of Education and Culture, Hilmar Farid, asserted that WCF is designed to be a dialogue platform, enabling the culture to be an integral part of the development and promoting a 'glocal' society to live in harmony.